


breathless

by xether



Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Aliens, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-06
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:49:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27924067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xether/pseuds/xether
Summary: seungwan is out of sooyoung’s world. literally. sooyoung has fallen for an alien.
Relationships: Park Sooyoung | Joy/Son Seungwan | Wendy
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	1. breathless

sooyoung knows aliens are real. everybody knows that aliens are real. international governments had confirmed extraterrestrial life long before man’s initial encounter with an alien. 

after volunteering as an alien ambassador, sooyoung expected the worst. the pleasant surprise of a kind young female alien on her doorstep was one of the best scenarios sooyoung could have hoped for. 

seungwan showed up in front of sooyoung with a translating device from the government and a will to learn. there was a bright sparkle in her eye that never quite faded.

sooyoung's primary objective is to help seungwan assimilate for five years. seungwan absorbed knowledge like a sponge. by constantly asking questions, she picked up a basic understanding of english in a few weeks. in a brave attempt at complete immersion, seungwan shoved her translator into one of sooyoung's drawers a month into living on Earth.

"sooyoung, can you help me please?" the crackle of leaves under their boots breaks with seungwan's call for help. chirping frames seungwan's question like a song.

"of course." flashing a smile is instinctual for sooyoung. another smile is quickly returned with a deep dimple by its side. 

"what's that adjective for things that are like you?" seungwan's eyebrows furrow in curiosity. she thinks her sentence makes perfect sense. 

"like me? similar?" sooyoung holds back giggles as seungwan shakes her head, her bangs swaying in front of her eyes.

"it's what you and the sky and the flowers and the water and the color blue have in common." red rushes up to sooyoung's cheeks. her ears grow hot, and her heart begins to race.

"beautiful?" she suggests with caution. seungwan shakes her head again. the blunt honesty that seungwan always exercised startles sooyoung for once.

"no, it's another one. you're beautiful, but this word also starts with a b. it's a synonym, but better." their sides brush, and sooyoung naturally reaches for seungwan’s hand. sooyoung is flattered to be called beautiful, but that was seungwan being seungwan.  
seungwan family had usually married for status; she was raised in extraterrestrial riches that afforded her move to a new planet. the chance that she even had feelings was low, and sooyoung knew that. 

nonetheless, with their living situation, sooyoung developed feelings. nearly a year into their arrangement, sooyoung began to crave seungwan's endearing confusions. it was hard not to. seungwan looked at sooyoung differently. sooyoung would bet on it being whole-hearted trust but the winking. the winking shackled hope onto sooyoung's measly crush. every time seungwan winked, sooyoung's heart jumped. a warm little innocent alien played sooyoung's heart without even knowing about it. 

"breathless." seungwan breaks their comfortable silence and sooyoung's train of thought - the train of thought that circled Seungwan. "no, wait it's breathtaking." feet coming to a stop, seungwan tugs sooyoung's hand back. 

"sooyoung, you are always breathtaking."  
she means it. seungwan really means it. her smile is genuine and saccharine and divine. 

"thank you." the warmth of seungwan's bare shoulders radiates into sooyoung's arms when they hug. bird calls resonate through the air above them. a pair sits on a tree branch nearby - like lovebirds.  
"can we kiss?" seungwan startles sooyoung again. her arms loosen as she is taken aback.  
"kissing is for people who love each other."

"i know. do we not love each other?" eyes bright with questioning and interest meet the eyes of longing and love. seungwan pouts; the bow of her lips plucks at Sooyoung's heartstrings like eagles plucking up their prey, and sooyoung melts to seungwan's request. 

their lips meet in a searing exchange that transcends hospitality. seungwan doesn't need to know the word enamored to tell sooyoung how that is how she feels. she doesn't need a translating computer or her two-year mentor to teach her how to express herself because this is enough. the heat of her lips meeting Sooyoung's cool mouth is enough to churn a vortex in sooyoung's mind, a flurry of satisfaction that blurs through sooyoung's conscience. 

it settles slowly when seungwan pulls away, and sooyoung is painfully aware that the skin on seungwan's neck nearly burns her hands. her tunnel vision includes only seungwan. 

"i really liked that. we should take morning walks more often."  
and sooyoung can’t agree more because morning dew drops and birds' calls are beautiful. but seungwan? she's breathless - breathtaking.  
she's breathtaking.

as for seungwan's rising body temperature? that was an issue for another day. another, much more intimate, much more tiring, and much more educational, day.


	2. burn

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey all! thanks so much for the support. this was only ever supposed to be a one shot, but i'm happy to expand on this! thanks for reading, hope you like what's to come.

seungwan is hot. like 9/10 times sooyoung is around. sooyoung has to approach seungwan like a mysterious pot on the stove. will it burn? can i even touch it? is it a comfortable warmth? or is there no temperature difference, has seungwan been simmering down?

everytime sooyoung asks, seungwan hops away with a little giggle and a quaint "not telling you."  
her hands are the only part of her that don't reach human-sizzler temperatures. it's been a real struggle for sooyoung. the burning temperatures only started that one day they took a walk. part of her used to think seungwan could control it, that she's using it to tease somehow. it worked. sooyoung wants to hug her, amongst some other physically intimate things, and she barely ever has the chance. 

"would you like to visit my home planet with me? maybe meet my family? i need to buy some items." sooyoung jumps. seungwan has gotten braver. surely, she knows what this means. 

“isn’t it too soon? we’ve only been seeing each other for a few months. i haven’t even gotten to cuddle with you.” going on a tirade, sooyoung spills out all her worries and a warm hand meets her face.

“that is why we are going. i have to get suppressors for my body temperature.” seungwan answers. she has a bag packed. it seems small, but sooyoung supposes most of her closet is probably at her room back home. they’re going to seungwan’s old home. that made even sooyoung feel a little warm.

“those exist?” sooyoung prods around. seungwan’s half of their apartment was always a bit more organized. not quite cleaner. easier to navigate. her room was decorated to resemble her room back home, but she often slept by sooyoung’s side. a pillow between them and a special sleeping bag on the bed to ensure sooyoung isn’t burnt. 

she doesn’t mind. she did at first. all she used to do was complain and bitch and moan. then she realized seungwan wants her too. all of her. that look in her eyes everytime sooyoung bounced back because her skin began to burn up said it all. her eyes would shake and her lips would tremble. she wanted sooyoung close so badly. she’d apologize profusely, holding sooyoung’s hands in hers because it’s the only contact they could have. she wasn’t using it to tease. 

“yes. there are different types. i believe one will make me,” their eyes meet and seungwan instantly flushes as she looks back at her stuff, “nevermind.” 

how cute. what is there to get shy about? they trust each other. whole heartedly. sooyoung begins to loosely braid seungwan’s hair. 

“make you what?” heat radiates off of seungwan’s back and neck. sooyoung always wondered if seungwan was hot when she wasn’t around. was sooyoung the cause of that change? the heat? that’d be adorable. it’d make not being able to hug her more bearable. 

“i won’t have any,” seungwan visibly seems to be looking for the right word to say. she sits and places one last outfit into her luggage. “drive.”

“drive…?” sooyoung’s eyes widen and she stops touching seungwan’s hair. “oh.” 

seungwan nods while sooyoung sits next to her. there’s palpable tension between them. sooyoung isn’t really sure how to dissolve it, but she wants to smile. this side of seungwan was rarely seen. the shy part. she was usually bold with her flirtatious and corny gestures. this was fun.

“anyway, i can get a different one. one that just deals with the temperature, nothing else. that was my plan.” she stands up and smiles at sooyoung, brushing her hands on her pants and walking away. sooyoung follows through the kitchen, and to her room. 

she’s packing. their short little trip is soon. she can probably visit seungwan’s family, right? nothing bad will happen. 

sooyoung tries not to think about it, but the fear sits in the back of her mind that maybe seungwan’s family will hate her. they exchange messages often. obviously, sooyoung never understands, and the language is so bizarre compared to anything on earth that the tones don’t have the same meanings. but surely, they’ll like her. 

“i heat up because of you, by the way.” seungwan slides through the door, closing it behind her, as if anyone would be able to hear them anyway. already flushed, she sits down where sooyoung pats on her bed. she takes sooyoung’s hand too. “i heat up when i feel good. when i get shy or when i feel in love or, you know.” sooyoung nods. now is not the time to tease her precious little alien. she’s being vulnerable.

“and you want to change that? so i can touch you more?” 

“precisely” 

“i’ll go with you.” seungwan’s face lights up. her eyebrows perk up. “let me meet your family too.” 

“i want to kiss you, but i am hot right now.” so they just lay back, hoping seungwan won’t toast the sheets through her special clothing. they’ve got a trip to prepare for.


	3. blast

sooyoung fiddles with her alien "phone" communicator. only a few hours into this trip, and she's already having second thoughts. first, the ship they're taking looks like one of those optical illusion impossible shapes. 

"this can't be human tested." she mumbles as the platform she's standing on begins to float. it moves across the floor, stopping gently at her assigned seat. some indecipherable symbols, that apparently are a number according to seungwan, matches her digital ticket.

she was slowly learning some of seungwan’s native tongue. but apparently there were about 4 different writing systems for numbers alone. she knew none of them.

"it is! i promise. the g force won't stop any bodily functions. at least it shouldn't." their bags fly into place, thanks to the magnet-type contraptions they were given at the station, and seungwan tells sooyoyng to sit. 

seungwan finds sooyoung's hand palm up in her lap, and she squeezes it. a tiny reminder that everything will be okay. 

now that she's positive that this intergalactic subway-ship isn't going to shut her body down, sooyoung's only worry is making a good impression. seungwan claims sooyoung already has, that the in-laws are already fond of her, but she still felt she had a small margin for error. 

the truth was she hadn't dated anyone since early undergrad, when she was still planning to be a veterinarian. she met his parents. not to brag, but they adored her. they were all human though. and now she's a kindergarten teacher with a master's degree, maybe with plans to pursue a ph.d in some kind of pedagogy.

a lot has changed.

hell, she might be the lead of "crazy rich aliens." except there's no wedding. she and seungwan aren't engaged. so it isn't that similar, but she's not expecting much better.

"what's with the eyebrows?" seungwan asks. her finger pokes exactly between sooyoung's eyebrows. they relax on contact.

"thinking." 

seungwan opens her mouth to ask; she's one to pry. sooyoung doesn't mind anymore, now that they tell each other everything. but seungwan realizes they're in a public space with random strangers all around, some who may or may not understand them, so they exchange smiles as the galaxy blurs behind them. 

"almost there." seungwan says, eyes somehow able to read the stars blasting past them. they're familiar to her. though it's been years since she has gone home, they're still familiar. can she still call it home? 

sooyoung wants that cheesy "home is with you" type of love. the kind where seungwan professes that anywhere she goes will only be home if seungwan is there. she knows she should tell seungwan what she wants, how she wants it. be clear. be concise. but she hesitates. every time because she doesn't want seungwan to feel like she has to choose. who she calls home. where she calls home. 

the whole situation is a different pill to swallow. it's an odd shape and flavor and texture and color. she's not really sure how anyone is supposed to take it.

just like that pill seungwan pops from what is basically an airport-subway-shuttle station necessity shop. 

"okay. give it a minute, but i shouldn't burn you anymore." seungwan slips the bottle? case? container. she slips the container into her purse-box thing, (sooyoung looks like such a tourist), and takes sooyoung's hand.

heat doesn't radiated off of her arms anymore. sooyoung lets her other hand find seungwan's forearm. it's warm. not hot, but warm. she's gotten away with quick kisses before. but for the first time since that kiss in the woods, sooyoung thinks she might be able to linger, to let a kiss really simmer-

"we're here." 

sooyoung goes still as they stand in front of what seems to be a door. she can't get a good look; the thing vaporizes after seungwan steps on something. her head falls back as she takes in the mass of the building.

sooyoung didn't think this building was it. they had been walking past it for at couple minutes. this isn't a house. this is a floating bungalow mansion complex. she's scared to even be holding seungwan's hand now. surely something of the camera sort is recording her. probably analyzing her every move or something.

then a voice in the entrance strikes a familiar chord. 

that's seungwan's mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on twitter ! @xethiee or https://twitter.com/xethiee?s=09


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